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(Model.)

T. R. LOWERRE.

v Letter-B0x. No. 227,552. Patented May 1|,

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UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICEQ THOMAS E. LOWERRE, OF MOTTHAVEN, NEW YORK, N. Y.

LETTER-BOX.

. SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters P teyt No. 227,552, dated May 11, 1880.

Application filed March 31, 1880. (Model) I To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, THOMAS B. LOWERRE, of Motthaven, in the county of New York and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Letter-Boxes, of which the following is a specification.

The object of this invention is to provide a cheap and simple device for notifying the public after each collection of the mail from a letter-box of the hour when the next collection will be made, and for controlling the attentiveness of the mail-carrier by making it appear whether or not he neglected to make the previous collection atthepropertime indicated on the time-table, according to the rules of the post-office, and for protecting the time-table from injury by being defaced or washed ofi by rain.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure lrepresents a front view of a letter-box constructed according to my present invention. Fig. 2 is a side view of the same, partly in section, on the line a: w of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a horizontal section of a portion of the same, taken on the line y y of Fig. 1, the time-table door or wicket being shown as when turned down and held in a horizontal position for inspection of the timetable. Fig. 4 is a face View of the time-table.

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts.

A is the letter-box, and B the ordinary door, hinged to the box A at a, and provided with the side pieces, 11, which latter act as stops against the upper edge, a, of the door-opening to keep the door when'open in convenient position for taking out the letters from the box.

Gis the time-tableindicatingthehours during the day at which the mail should be collected,

and giving a special notice below, at c, of the hour at which the next collection should be made. This time-table (instead of being, as usual, pasted upon the box, where it is liable to be torn off or washed off by rain) is mounted upon a piece of pasteboard or other stiff card, and inserted from the upper end of the opened door, on the inside of the latter, in a metallic frame or pocket, D, p which is fastened by screws. d to the door B, (or to the door B and one of its side pieces, 1),) as shown in the drawings. In front of the pocket D the door B is provided with an opening, I), of suitable size to allow of fully reading the time-table G, and

the said opening I) is covered inside the door with a glass pane, E, which is held permanently in its place by a small cleat, F, fastened by screws f to the door B, the said cleat being grooved or provided with a small flange, f, which receives the upper edge of the glass E and retains it in position in front of the time-table.

To protect the glass E from injury the opening 12 is covered by a door or Wicket, G, which is hinged at its lower end to lugs H on the door B, the hinge-pin It being surrounded with a spiral spring, I, whose ends are fastened, one to the door B and the other to the wicket G, and the spring is so set that it will always keep the wicket closed and covering the glass unless opened by the knob or handle g, and held open while inspecting the time-table.

The time-tables (all alike with exception only of the last line of the special notice, at c, which indicates the hour of the next collection) are kept in the post-office in series arranged in order corresponding to the hours of collection, and when the letter-carrier empties a mail-box at, for instance, 7 oclock, (supposing the hours to be those indicated. in Fig. 4 of the drawings,) he also removes the card then in the pocket D and inserts in its place a card bearing the inscription shown at c in Fig. 4, taking with him to the post-office the removed card, which he delivers at the same time with the letters from the box, and receives instead a card or time-table bearing the inscription: Next collection between 1:00 and 1:30.

If the card shown in Fig. 4 be found to remain in the pocket D of a box, A, after 10 oclock, it is evident that the carrier has noglected to collect between 9:30 and 10 oclock, and his neglect will also be discovered on his arrival at the post-ofiice, when, on returning there the cards just removed from the boxes, he will be found short of one card. Thus this invention affords a very simple and effective means of controlling the attentiveness of mailcarriers in collecting mail from street-boxes.

It is evident that the pocket D may be arranged at the side instead of front of the box, if preferred.

Having thus described my invention, I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent- 1. A letter-box, A, having an inside frame or pocket, D, accessible through the door B, to receive and iuclose, visible through an outside opening, b, a card, (J, of a series of interchangeable time tables bearing successively notices of the successive times of collection,

substantially as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a letter-box, A, the combination of the door B, provided with the openingb, the pane E, held by the cleat F, to cover the said opening on the inside, and the pocket or frame D, for inclosing the card 0, substantially as specified.

THOMAS R. LOWERRE.

Witnesses A. W. ALMQVIST, SIGFRID LINDHAGEN. 

